can't always be the hero
by Mika Uriah
Summary: Wally finds his past and his present crashing onto itself, after he comes back from an appointment - Adult content, you have been warned.


….But, I couldn't save her

By: Mika Uriah

Disclaimer: I own nothing, except for UNCLE SAM and AUNT LAURA.

A/N: deals with discussions of adult situations. You have been warned!

RATING: I say Teen maybe PG 13 - you think differently, tell me and I'll change it.

Wally "Flash" West walked into the watchtower, slowly, his normally bright and friendly eyes were full of unshed tears his bright red cowl was down around his shoulders instead of up and around his face.

His feet dragged behind him and he looked broken. Almost like something died in side of him and no amount of CPR would bring it back.

He was carrying a dry cleaning bag with a hangar, he borrowed one of Dick Grayson's old suits for the 'occasion' and he had to give it back to Bruce Wayne today.

Speak of the devil; he had found Bruce Wayne in his cape and cowl in the monitoring womb, He took a deep breath 'don't let him see you cry, West, real men don't cry' he thought bitterly, why was it the stupidest pieces of advice that stuck with you in life? "Hey, Bats, um, here is the suit back. Thanks for lending it too me. I know I should buy one, but I never need one, today was the exception."

"No problem., Wally, thanks for returning it." he looked at the bag and noticed he had it dry cleaned "Oh! You didn't have to do that."

Wally shrugged, sadly "its no big deal."

Bruce looked at Wally's hazel eyes through the white lenses of his cowl "you have the cowl off, that is different for you. Any reason?"

Wally shrugged again "who cares, anymore."

Batman raised an eyebrow "wow and people say I brood." He was worried for the youngest out of the founding members of the league, Wally was normally so upbeat and hyper "seriously, Wally, you okay?" Bruce took off his own cowl to match the redhead standing in front of him "what's going on, you look like someone died."

Wally shrugged again "someone did. My Uncle."

Bruce swallowed and closed his eyes for a second 'smooth move Bruce' a voice mused "Jesus, Wally! I'm sorry. Really, are you okay?"

Flash kicked an invisible stone on the tile steps of the monitoring womb "its no big deal, apparently that's what happens when you are on death row."

Bruce blanched for a split second and took Flash by the arm, leaving the monitoring room and passing by a confused Shayera and Diana; neither of the men spoke until they were in Batman's dorm room on the Watchtower "come again?"

Flash sat on the white couch in the dorm room and rubbed the back of his neck "My Uncle Sam was on death row back home. Today was his execution. I went." the young college student refused to look at the 30 something year old Billionaire. "I didn't want to. But, he asked me to."

Bruce sat down on the coffee table so he was facing the younger man in front of him at the same level he was "Why didn't you tell one of us? Once of us would've gone with you, too support you."

The superhero smiled in spite of the situation, a sad watery smile, instead of his bright boyish one. "Why depress everyone? This way made it easier."

Bruce nodded "can I ask what he did?"

Wally nodded "can I start from the beginning?" Bruce made a signal for him to go on "Uncle Sam and his wife, Aunt Laura, raised me from when I was 3 when my mom died."

"Wow that's young. How did she die?"

"Brain Aneurysm. Apparently she died before she hit the floor. My next door neighbour, Mrs. Caruthers found me crawling over her body trying to wake her up."

Bruce shivered "Where was Dad?"

"Pffft…Underneath a college co-ed probably. I don't know to be honest, my Dad left when I was born. The doctor said 'congratulations Mr. Vaughn, you have a baby boy' - and his response was buying a train ticket to no responsibility land. Population anywhere but, close to Adrianna West and their son," the 'fastest hero alive' started his story bitterly. "Anyway," he continued "instead of putting me in a foster home or an orphanage my Aunt Laura and Uncle Sam brought me into their place. Except Uncle Sam was a raging alcoholic and instead of tucking his little nephew in and reading him a story like he did when they visited. Story time was replaced with a slap or a punch and shouts of 'I'll give you something to cry about.' It happened for a year, than Aunt Laura one night jumped in front of me and he continued hitting her instead of me. " Bruce was on the verge of tears himself, but he signalled for Wally to go on when he was ready "I was 11 when he finally killed her. Apparently; using his hands as weapons of mass face obliteration and belt as a whip no longer appealed to him. One night when I was upstairs and doing my home work, he forced him self on Aunt Laura, he was drunk and couldn't get it up, so he raped her with the candle stick holder they got as a present from my mom at their wedding. "

Flash was up and about now, pacing back and forth smacking his fist into his palm, clenching his jaw to keep himself from crying, Bruce was pretty sure that if Wally wasn't careful teeth were going to crack under the pressure of his clenched jaw, but, that was probably the least amount of pain Wally has been in for the last few years. "He was sick of her screaming, So, he took the belt that he normally used as a whip and wrapped it around her throat and tightened it just enough. Just enough for her wind pipe to break and for to make that gargling sound as if she was drowning."

Tears were streaming down his face openly now and he didn't bother hiding them from the Dark Knight; Bruce got up and stood in front of the police lab assistant and stretched his arms around the man in a hug, both slumping to the floor "I was upstairs, and I couldn't save her. Oh God! If I wasn't so scared of him, I could've of saved her."

Bruce's blue eyes stung with unshed tears "listen to me, Wally, It wasn't your fault. You were a child. A child who witnessed something that they were never supposed to witness, and it wasn't your fault. If you tried to save your Aunt Laura, who knows what would've happened to you on top of it. It was not your fault, okay?"

He felt the red head nod against his chest.

Bruce let his tears fall silently for his friend, as he shushed the broken hero "I'm sorry Aunt Laura, I'm sorry." he sobbed over and over again, "I'm sorry I couldn't save you." Bruce rocked Flash back and forth as if he was a child he was trying to put down for a nap.

There was silence for a few seconds, and the billionaire thought that he fell asleep, Bruce stopped the rocking - but the talking started up again " Bruce?"

"Hmmm?" The boy billionaire was just as drained, emotionally as Wally was and he refused to speak anymore unless it involved monosyllabic sounds and words.

"Thanks for listening."

"Sssshh...Go to sleep. Don't worry about it."

It took a few minutes but Wally finally was lulled to sleep by Gotham's most eligible bachelor. But, as tired and as drained as Bruce was from listening to his friend's story, every time his eyes drooped he thought of the broken hero in his lap crying in his sleep, and he wondered what would make the man turned little boy once more smile again.

END.


End file.
